New Delhi: Indian PM Narendra Modi on Friday wished the nation on Holi, the festival of colours.
Modi said he wishes to see the festival bringing every colour of happiness in the lives of people.
This year the festival is celebrated at a time when the country is witnessing a fall in COVID-19 cases.
However, cases are rising in several nations across the globe.
आप सभी को होली की हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं। आपसी प्रेम, स्नेह और भाईचारे का प्रतीक यह रंगोत्सव आप सभी के जीवन में खुशियों का हर रंग लेकर आए।
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 18, 2022
As the legend goes, Prahlada, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, was tricked into sitting on a pyre by her aunt Holika.
While the fire burnt her, Prahlada was safe, enraging her father, the demon king Hiranyakashipu, who smashed a pillar from which Lord Vishnu's Narashimha avatar emerged and after an ensuing battle, killed the demon.
It is believed that people smeared others with the ashes from the pyre and thus the tradition of playing Holi started, which eventually used colours.
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